Thursday, May 15, 2014

Are you doing what God called you to do?

I was reading through Acts not too long ago, and I've heard these verses before, but for some reason, it's stuck with me for the past few weeks. I cannot seem to get it out of my head.

Then Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, “Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription:

TO THE UNKNOWN GOD.

Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you:

--- Acts 17: 22, 23 (NKJV)

As you probably know, Acts is written as a testimony to the acts of the apostles. It's their teachings and all that we're reading about.

Paul, here, has come across an altar in Athens to an unknown deity. These people were serving a god they knew absolutely nothing about, and when Paul saw it, he stood up and said something. He witnessed to them. He proclaimed EXACTLY who this UNKNOWN GOD was. He told them of Jesus Christ.

“God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. Nor is He worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things. And He has made from one blood
every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has
determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their
dwellings, so
that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for
Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’ Therefore,
since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the
Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art
and man’s devising. Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because
He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in
righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of
this to all by raising Him from the dead.”

--- Acts 17: 24-31 (NKJV)

Note the things that Paul is saying here. Jesus gives to all life, breath, and all things. Paul told them that He is not far from each one of us, that we live and move and have our being in Him. He also told them that they were to repent because God would one day judge the world.

What does this sound like to you? Paul was witnessing to these people who had no clue about the God they were serving. They had no idea what to even call Him. So, seeing this, Paul decided they ought to know just how wonderful the God he served was.

Don't you think it's time that we followed Paul and told others just how wonderful our God is? It's our responsibility as Christians and followers of God to tell the world the miraculous works of our Heavenly Father.

I know it can be scary. How do you just walk up to people on the street and say, "Hey, do you know Jesus? Do you know just what He can do for you today?"

So what if they walk away and ignore you? The worst that can happen is that they call you a Jesus freak. Take that as a compliment and keep going! We're put on this earth to perform the duties of apostles. We are the followers of Christ, fishing for Him. These people deserve to know the truth, and it's our duty to make sure that we're telling them just how wonderful it is to be a Christian.

And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked, while others said, “We will hear you again on this matter.”

---Acts 17: 32

According to Acts, even part of these people walked away from Paul after hearing him speak of Jesus' story, but some listened. Paul did the right thing though. He knew that despite what people may say or do, he had to tell them the truth. He was doing what God put him on this earth to do. Be a witness.

So if you see someone who needs to know of God, I challenge you today, do all you can to show them the goodness of God. Be a light on a hill for our Lord. It's better to reach one soul and make enemies than to try and please man. You can't serve both God and man.